Downfall of the Gods by K.J. Parker

In the Temple one can find the statue of the goddess, in order to pray and ask to be forgiven and be accorded. Usually, at least, but if you are Lord Archias, and if you have murdered Lysippus, the musician favoured by the goddess, forgiveness will not be easy to achieve.

A God could be very angry, but rules are set also for these mythical beings, and so Artemis choses to forgive only if Archias will be able to succeed in an – impossible and forbidden – quest.

This novella is brilliant in proposing *very* human gods, the extremely whimsical Artemis, and it talks also about the human expectations from faith and religion.